The borough of Rochdale has seen Greater Manchester’s biggest increase in new homes being built – with over 10 times the average regional growth.
A housing boom has hit Rochdale, with the borough enjoying a larger increase in the number of homes being built in the last year than anywhere else in Greater Manchester.
Government housing figures show that 799 homes were built in the borough in 2017/18, up from 315 in 2016/17, an increase of almost 154 per cent.
The increase seen in Rochdale far outstripped any other Greater Manchester area, where the average was an increase of 13.5 per cent. The average across England was a 2 per cent rise.
Development at 67 sites across the borough has helped fuel the increase, including 42 semi and detached properties at the former Birch Hill hospital site in Smithy Bridge and 43 new homes at Cherwell Avenue in Heywood.
A further 38 new properties have been built at Broad Lane, Rochdale, with another 22 at Langley in Middleton.
Much of the development has taken place on long-term vacant brownfield sites, including the former Coral Mill site in Newhey and Nile Street in Rochdale.
he housing boost has also generated £1.7 million in new homes bonus and additional council tax income for the borough.
The news comes as figures reveal that house prices in Rochdale are growing at an average of more than 7 per cent, the sixth highest house price growth in the UK.
The new homes are a further boost to the borough’s on going regeneration, after ONS figures revealed that there are now 8255 enterprises in Rochdale, up from 6685 in 2017. Over £1 million square feet of employment space has been let across the borough since the start of the year.
Councillor Daalat Ali, Cabinet Member for Planning at Rochdale Borough Council, said:
“These impressive figures show that our borough’s on going transformation, which includes a £400 million regeneration programme in Rochdale town centre, is paying dividends, with major housebuilders wanting to invest here and more and more people wanting to live here.
“As well as creating a huge variety of new houses, from affordable homes to aspirational properties, this investment has helped to transform a number of challenging, brownfield sites and is helping to regenerate the borough. As a council, we take a proactive approach to development and I’m delighted that this is delivering such strong results.”
